Hamas Rejects Including Tunnels in Gaza Disarmament Talks with Mediators

A Hamas delegation that recently arrived in Cairo conveyed its response to a June proposal by Nikolay Mladenov, head of the Peace Council managing Gaza, according to Saudi newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat. The reply included only minor changes to Hamas and other Palestinian factions' previous stance, with involved parties doubting the likelihood of accepting the amendments.

A key point of contention remains the payment of salaries to former Hamas government employees. Hamas insists on full payment to all workers, while Mladenov's updated proposal limits payments to those working under the future Gaza Management Committee. Another major dispute concerns the disarmament process, specifically Hamas's removal of the term "infrastructure" from the definition, which originally encompassed tunnels, weapons caches, and manufacturing workshops. Hamas thus excludes these infrastructures from the disarmament process.

The factions also demand a phased implementation of disarmament within about two weeks of agreement, conditioned on clear political progress regarding Palestinian self-determination. Palestinian sources noted the minor changes were only partially coordinated among Hamas and some factions, with others claiming no formal consultation occurred as planned.

Senior Hamas officials, including Zahar Jabarin, a member of the political bureau responsible for the West Bank arena, participated in the Cairo delegation. Their presence signals dissatisfaction with the frequent changes proposed by Mladenov. A Hamas official was quoted saying, "Either we reach new understandings, mediators find other solutions, or we return to the point of dispute."

Another Palestinian source suggested Israel and Mladenov might reject the changes, potentially leading to renewed political conflict.